Understanding Cocaine Addiction: Signs, Symptoms, Effects And Treatment

Not many people trying drugs that are well-known to have a high addictive potential for the very first time do so thinking that that first use will mark their rite of passage into full-blown addiction. Rather, they test the waters convinced that the drug will make them feel good for a short period of time while retaining full control. Some first-time users are, in fact, committed to a "one and done" approach. Cocaine is no exception. 

Sometimes, it really ends up working out this way. Look around on the popular message board Reddit, for instance, and you'll quickly find folks who recently tried cocaine for the first time complaining that "all the drug did" was make them feel more energetic and alert, and declaring cocaine "overrated" — pretty much every week, actually. After figuring out there was an expectation/reality mismatch, they stay away from cocaine from that point forward. 

What happens when you use cocaine?

So, cocaine is meant to do some things that most people would consider pleasurable or desirable — using it can induce a feeling of euphoria, give you a hefty dose of energy, make you really alert, and amplify environmental stimuli like sounds, light and of course touch. Even that first time can also, on the other hand, make you irritable, aggressive, and paranoid. Other people may notice you've lost your inhibitions, become rather over-the-top all around, and are hyperactive while you're using. You may talk a lot, won't feel like sleeping, and may notice interesting things happening in the sexual department. 

Yup, cocaine abuse puts you at risk of heart damage, kidney damage, stroke, cognitive decline, and even death. Seizures, headaches, weight loss, frequent nosebleeds, the loss of your sense of smell, and psychosis are also possible. On top of that, if you share the paraphernalia you need to use cocaine with others, you also expose yourself to the risk of infections like hepatitis C. Even before you suffer permanent health consequences, however, an addiction can hold you in its grip. 

What are the signs of a cocaine addiction?

Here are the official diagnostic criteria for stimulant use disorder — which would include cocaine addiction — courtesy of the fifth edition of the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (but paraphrased to be slightly less clinical). You or someone else you know may be addicted to cocaine if at least two of these symptoms apply over the course of a year:

• You take more cocaine, more often, and for longer than you planned to. (This signals a loss of control.)
• You want to stop using cocaine or cut down on its use, but find yourself unable to. 
• You spend a lot of time using cocaine, trying to get cocaine, or recovering from using cocaine. 
• You crave cocaine when you don't have it. 
• Your cocaine use interferes with your actual life responsibilities. 
• You keep using cocaine even though it's causing you social and relationship problems.
• You check out of important obligations or reduce your involvement because you're using cocaine.
• You use cocaine in situations where it puts you in physical danger — such as driving or operating machinery. 
• You keep using cocaine even though it's causing you physical or mental health problems.
• You've developed tolerance, as shown by the fact that you need to use more and more cocaine to achieve the same effect or a similar one, or you're using the same amount but it's just not doing much for you anymore. 
• You experience cocaine withdrawal symptoms when you're not using for a while, or you avoid withdrawal through continued use.

What treatment options are available for people who want to quit using cocaine?

Cognitive behavioral therapy, inpatient drug rehab, and self-help communities like Narcoctics Anonymous can all help you manage your cocaine addiction to the point where you can consistently abstain. Be aware that even "one more time" can always reel you right back in, though — total abstinence should be your goal. 

Several medications may also be able to help you through your initial struggles to overcome your cocaine addiction, however. Talk to your doctor about whether any of these may be suitable for them. They include disulfiram, a drug that successfully helps some people suffering from alcohol use disorder, and buprenorphine​, which is sometimes prescribed for people who have opioid addiction. 

A cocaine addiction is, like other substance addictions, a chronic brain disease. As with other brain diseases like depression, there will likely be periods of remission and relapse. Quitting cocaine isn't anywhere close to as simple, for many people, as simply choosing to quit using and then never touching the stuff again. Apart from the fact that the drug addiction has messed with your brain, staying away from cocaine will also induce withdrawal symptoms that are difficult to handle and call you right back to cocaine.